Top Tips for Writing a Design Brief
A good starting point is to ask yourself a series of questions.
HOW do you want to use your garden? Is it a garden for play, entertaining, growing fruit and veg or purely a place to relax and escape from the chaos of working life. How you want to use your garden can generate ideas for items that you may need in your garden such as a BBQ area, a fire pit for evening gatherings, a pergola for shade or a summerhouse to provide somewhere to sit and read.
A garden also has a practical purpose. You may need storage for bikes, gardening equipment or outdoor furniture. Do the bins need a dedicated storage area? And what about a washing line?
WHEN will you be using your garden? Is the garden just for weekends or for evenings too? Where we locate your seating and dining areas could be determined by when you will be using them. Somewhere to perch with a morning coffee or an evening G&T to catch the last rays of the summer sun.
WHO will be using your garden? This may determine what goes in the garden, such as a play area if you have children, but also how much space is required for certain areas. If you are used to having large gatherings you may require a large paved area to ensure enough space for table and chairs. Or it may be a garden for just you and your family, somewhere intimate and private.
Then consider what you LIKE. This may include such things as building materials. You may prefer stone to decking, or decking to gravel. You may have a list of your favourite plants you wold like incorporated in the planting plan, or simply like a particular colour scheme. And what style appeals to you? This will often complement the interior and architecture of your home or coudl be in complete contrats. Consider collecting together images from magazines of gardens or garden features that inspire you, even if you are not certain how they could work for you.
And don't forget to consider what you DON"T like too. This can be as important as what you do like. This could include a specific style or colour, materials and plants, or elements such as water that you don't want included. If we have a list of your dislikes we can avoid accidentally incorporating them within the finished design.
And last but not least, have you considered your budget?
If we know from the start what you wish to spend, we can immediatley start advising what can be achieved in your garden within your budget. However, if you are still not sure, our two-step design process ensures that there are no nasty surprises.
If you are still struggling to get to grips with writing your design brief, don't worry, we offer a one hour Design Consultation for exactly this purpose. We guide you through the process and help you determine exactly what you require and provide the right level of inspiration.
The finished garden just works so well in the awkward shaped space. Louise brought my ideas to life in a more imaginative way than I could ever have dreamed.
Maxine Drabble, Wilmslow